Snow White

June 15, 2013
In this version, the heroine is pious as well as pretty. Here the setting is Anatolia (in Turkey), which looks similar to a European landscape. Snow White is not a princess, but she still has a jealous stepmother who sends a huntsman to kill her. Seven female dwarfs, all kind and religious, find the girl on their doorstep after the huntsman refuses to do the evil deed. It may sound more or less like the usual story, but the poisoned apple becomes poisoned dates, the fruit that traditionally breaks the Ramadan fast. The poisoned fruit is not dislodged from the girl's throat when servants stumble, carrying her glass coffin to the prince's palace (as in Grimm). Nor does the prince kiss Snow White (as in Disney). Here, the prince's mother and a doctor awaken her with medicine and prayer. The gruesome Grimm ending changes, as it does in many children's versions, though with a twist: Snow White grants mercy to her evil stepmother and recites a verse from the Quran. Such verses are quoted throughout the text, with references provided. The full-color watercolors, with some Anatolian details in clothing and household goods, are attractive, but the faces are sometimes awkward. Snow White (not quite beautiful) and the stepmother don't always look the same on different pages. Created for religious Muslim children, this may be of interest to institutions or families seeking such materials. (glossary) (Picture book/fairy tale. 5-9)

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September 1, 2013

K-Gr 3-Blending bits of the Qur'an into the classic folktale, this Islamic version nicely maintains the structure and essential elements of the well-known story. A good child, born to loving parents, Snow White "learnt about Islam, science, language, and played sports." When her mother died, she "took great comfort in the words of the Qur'an and her prayers." The wicked stepmother, true to form, is beautiful and jealous, and dabbles in magic. She owns a jinn who delivers those words about who is the fairest of them all, and she remembers "the words of an evil magician...that the secret to lasting youth was to eat the heart and liver of a young and beautiful girl." The scheme of good and evil plays out in the familiar pattern, focusing on strong women. The "seven dwarf sisters-in-faith" represent "kindness, wisdom, courage, forgiveness, honesty, generosity and patience." There is a handsome prince, of course, but it's his wise mother and a female doctor who rouse Snow White from her poisonous sleep. Patently didactic, the story is robust and moves along smoothly, noting prayerful moments throughout with Arabic terms translated in a glossary. Simply drawn and warmly colored full-page scenes aptly convey the ugly strength of the stepmother and the multifaceted life Snow White enjoys with the dwarves. Evil becomes its own enemy as the stepmother vainly applies the poisoned comb to her own head, but she gets to repent, because, in the end, the story is about forgiveness. This book is respectful of an audience not often represented in children's books, and its clever take on an old favorite is likely to have broad appeal.-Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston

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